SirSnookalot

If that's what you're catching, it really don't matter.

I would have to know more about it than 1 paragraph on a petition, not saying whether it's a good or bad idea or even feasible. At present my main concern is who is going to pay for it?

When using light gear the fish species has a lot to do with success and failure. They all don't fight the same, swim at different speeds, pound for pound have different strengths, some dive deep and others go more horizontal, also some are acrobatic and others not. Take a 30# muskie, strong and powerful but short on stamina, this fish will tire and can be landed on lighter gear and line. Let's look at a 30# wahoo, a fish that swims upwards of 45-50 mph, strong with stamina, drags less than 10# won't even phase it, bit tough to run it down as a good chance it's swimming faster than the boat your in. Chances are pretty slim in landing that fish unless you have the right rod and reel, 50-80 line and plenty of it. Could I land a 30# tarpon on light tackle, done it a bunch of times, simple because the nature of the fish. By the same token I've had to chase 30# jacks down, they don't swim at near the speed of the wahoo, but have stamina and strenght A 200# sturgeon on light gear is a remarkable feat.

I have 2 recons, both from Pure Fishing, I believe Factory Outlet is Pure fishing too. Both have been in my service for several years, came to me looking and performing as a new reel, and are still that way today. I personal would only purchase one from the factory rep, not a 3 rd party. As far as repairs go, if it's minor there are qualified people in my area, if something more major or part is required it goes back to the factory, unless it's cost prohibitive and shipping costs, then I'm buying a new reel.

Most of the time nothing, but can't speak directly to your specific rod. I do this practice almost every single day with every rod I own, but 1 oz with a rating a max rating of 1/2 oz may be pushing it just a little bit. Bass fishing is a bit different as you are more target casting, I don't think overly exceeding the weight parameter is all that beneficial, that said the rod is not going to suffer any ill effects from using a slightly heavier lure. From my own experience some times that heavier lure is causing some soreness in my back as the rod is loading up differently.

I catch my share of fish that have a bit of size to them not to mention some incredible fights, but it doesn't happen near as often this time of year. Not that I give up fishing saltwater but I spend more time bass fishing now than I would in the summer. It's always nice to stick a big bass, but that isn't the real goal, the objective is to be outdoors and have some fun, bass fishing is the perfect medium because seldom will I go skunk. Is my level of enjoyment any different with a 2.9# or a 3.1# bass, probably not. I don't weigh them anyway, I'm not consumed with a PB or strictly targeting larger ones, they happen all on their own usually when I least expect it. Sure it's fun, but enjoying the outdoors is even better, even if I do get skunked.

Being a young adult in the 60's and 70's I was very much influenced by the spiritualism movement of the times. People like Werner Erhardt, Meyer Baba ( still hang a picture of him in my home today and was the guy before Bobby McFerrin who said " don't worry be happy") had a a big effect on my outlook of life. For balance I read most books by C. Clement Stone, Napoleon Hill, Norman Vincent Peale, Og Mandino and others.......still believe in what goes around comes around, to this day. A person has to find their own niche in life, what works for one may not for another. From an observational standpoint the people I've encountered that tend to be positive can be more pleasant to be around and have a better chance at achieving what they wish for. Success is a journey, not a goal and can only be measured by the enrichment of ones life, money and possessions really don't matter, although some of our superficial toys are nice to have.

In Palm Beach county they are making a little bit of a comeback, I personally have caught them in only 2 places and the sizes are small. Further south I understand they are catching them with much less effort and they are bigger.

Very sweet car...........I liked the yellow !

Back on topic, I don't think it's too unusual for a pension plan to make investments in companies, bonds, mutual funds or other types of investment vehicles in both domestic and international markets. I'm sure some of our stock broker members could enlighten people much more than I can. In this situation, as far as my limited comprehension allows, the teachers pension plan has it's own private equity fund and that is who purchased Plano. As a rule private equities are about making money for them and their investors, the product itself and the employees quite often are a secondary concern. Time will tell what changes are made regarding management and production, if any, as Plano seems to have good market share. Assets and market share do not always mean desired profitability, any company can be a candidate for resale or restructure, but the product itself will most likely be around for years to come.

I know where that lake is but I've never fished it, can't recall if there was any place to park. Not far from there, off Yamato is a pond loaded with pads and some very nice bass. Wear socks or boots, a ton of fire ants, I've got the scars to prove it.

Line doesn't break when the fish is pulling drag out or you're chasing it down, it breaks when the drag is too tight. A larger reel set with a light drag is going to reduce the pressure on the fish too. I don't think a few pounds of drag will slow a 200# fish, I've been spooled on fish way smaller using heavier gear with 20# of drag, not being able to run it down.

Odd, not the first pension fund to make investments. The Texas teachers pension invested in Las Vegas gaming company, Station Casinos and we all remember Jimmy Hoffa with the UAW pension, and I'm sure there are many more. Plano was purchased by TPC, the pensions private equity fund as I understood the article, private equities always make me shutter a bit. Yes it will be interesting to see where it goes.

I wouldn't pay much for old technology if I were planning on using it. If I were a collector with no thought of usage, I'd pay whatever it took to add it to my collection.

@Vinnie, like you I've been fishing since birth some 60 odd years ago, quite adept at b/c, spinning and fly. The difference I see is b/c rods for bass are more readily available in heavier sizes, good for pulling fish out of cover and handling some heavier lures. Some on this forum no longer use b/c gear such as myself, I'm strictly spinning, there are spinning rods made that are heavy enough, I personally use an inshore rod for that purpose. I'm as accurate as I need to be, get the distance I think that is sufficient and prefer the weight of the reel on the bottom of the rod when fighting a hefty fish, There can be a torque factor (I believe that's the term) when fighting a larger fish with a b/c, the twisting of the rod and reel, another reason I prefer a spinning rod with a foregrip. I'm in the minority, b/c are the overwhelming choice for bass fisherman, I'm not interested in ever using one again. Almost any spinning reel priced up to $150 is going to do a super job, I'd be more concerned with how a reel feels on my rod, and if it catches my eye, that said many lower priced reels won't just be adequate, they will work wonderfully. I would say that if targeting larger fish or an occasionally saltwater outing $150 would be my entry level. I would review the pros and cons of a certain reel based on my experience using them, but I don't give specific recommendations.

I use braided lines almost exclusively for freshwater, inshore and offshore saltwater fishing, I do fish before the sunrises. I'm just as pleased using standard green, no need to see the line for me. I do have hi vis yellow on 1 setup only because I liked the way it on my reel.

One way I fish jerkbaits is what I call "lazy fishing", in that I'm extending very little energy. I do not retrieve my lure, I pull it thru the water with an a slowish arm swing, reeling up the slack. As I'm taking up slack the lure is at rest in the water, that's the time where I some good strikes. Any ambush fish like a bass IMO goes for the easiest target, unless they are in a highly aggressive mood, that being the case I change my technique accordingly.

I have used the same lures in different colors, some in pristine condition and others banged up, chipped and faded, no difference in catch rate. By the same token I've changed to a completely different style of lure, pretty much with the same results. When they are "off" it's tough and when they are "on", you could catch them on your mothers old garter belt. I don't feel fish are nearly as sophisticated as lure manufactures even publishers of magazines depict them to be, their objective is to sell you something. The last week I've been catching about 10 fish or so in about 90 minutes, yesterday I didn't have a single strike, it was an off day and read nothing else into it.

The last few weeks flukes for bass have been my weapon of choice, bear in mind I'm in South Florida and the bite is starting to pick up here. I mainly use them in canals and work them very close to the shoreline, since I'm fishing from an elevated position and do not use a bullet weight, they basically become a topwater bait. I subtly walk them or retrieve them a bit on the slow side with very little of an erratic motion, this technique has worked well given the shallower waters I fish.

Surveys are like polling, may say one thing thing but behind closed doors but do something else. Of the over 20 reels I own only 1 is made in the U.S.A., that being an Avet mxj. It's a very decent reel but probably no better than it's foreign counterpart of a similar price, like Daiwa or Shimano. Every spinning reel I own is manufactured elsewhere, whether it be by an American company or not. Some American manufacturers have no loyalty to our domestic workers, as with many corporations profits are paramount. By the same token American anglers seem to favor a Shimano, Abu or Pflueger over an Ardent, is it getting more for your buck or buying a better made reel? The survey may have some validity regarding products I have no knowledge of, when it comes to fishing gear I personally will be sticking with the products I'm presently buying, at least for now. If American made products in the future produce quality at an affordable price I'll gladly purchase them.

That curly end sounds like a knot pull thru. There are a ton of good knots, use what's easy to tie but just make sure it's done right, if not do it over. I personally am a lousy at tieing knots, but I use what works for me and knot failure isn't a concern. For braid I use an improved clinch, a double wrap if I'm targeting offshore species like amberjack, an ordinary clinch for attachment of leaders and hooks (an alberto when going line to line) and a loop knot for lures, I make an extra wrap.

My personal best as it's my very first permit caught from shore. Not too big as far as permit go, no weight as I don't weigh them. One of my best landings ever, I chased this fish on foot for about 300 yds (I paced it off later), for those that know the current in the Boynton inlet, I was lucky to land this fish. Not bad for a 67 year old guy at a mere 135#.

Not that the knot takes any kind of time to tie, but for bass fishing just taping the line on the spool is adequate, you will never get spooled. I don't use backing either and never had any kind of slippage. Some like electrical tape, I like masking tape, I don't see 1 being any better than the other.

Hooligan is right about breakage, rods don't break from fish. I have caught so many fish much larger and stronger than bass with bass type rods, spinning I may add, they don't break. When they do break is some kind of non related fishing injury, like stepping on them or whipping them around to get de snagged. RW is right about rod power being more about the lure weight than the size of the fish, that said I often use the same rod for bass as I do for snook, for saltwater it's quite common to use lures that may exceed a little bit, never saw anyone that didn't do it. I personally have no need to change rods dependent on what kind of lure I'm using, but to each their own.

It's up to the professional to compete where they wish. A top pro in any sport probably will not enter any competition for the sake of a buck, most of them have got plenty already. In some cases they may compete to fulfill an obligation to their sponsor, Tiger Woods used to play at Warick Hiils in Flint Mich, think he would have been there if Buick wasn't his sponsor at the time. The best want to compete against the best and in the most prestigious tournaments.